The Planet of the Faulty Star
by crimescenelover
Summary: The 11th Doctor and his companions find themselves on a planet with problems only the Doctor can fix. But fixing them might prove highly dangerous to the Time Lord and the Ponds know there are limits to what they are willing to let the Doctor sacrifice.
1. A Most Hospitable People

**Chapter title** : A Most Hospitable People

 **Author's note** : Hello and welcome to my very first venture into the Whovian fandom! This is all started as a simple plot bunny, where I thought it might just scrape up to two chapters but then I started writing and suddenly a whole story came popping out! Mind you, it might still be simple but I had some fun writing it! Most of the names, locations and everything else in this story are purely made up as I don't think any Whovian lore actually exists about any of it ... Or probably it does and I've just missed it! So just to be safe I'm gonna say here and now that any similarities to anything you might have seen/read/heard before occurring within this story are purely coincidental!

This story contains the 11th Doctor as that is the face that appeared when I pictured this in my mind and I absolutely loved his quick jabs and found them incredibly amusing to try and recreate. And also, the fabulous Ponds! But I have loved every Doctor in the New Who so far and I am completely excited for the new female Doctor! So this is written as my Doctor Who withdrawals are only getting worse and I hope you will enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it!

EXTRA NOTE: I think I accidently uploaded the wrong file the first time around ... I noticed a sizeable piece of the first chapter seemed to be missing. So I'm just gonna try again!

Anyways, in case you are in fact reading this, I will once again state:

GERONIMO!

 **Disclaimer** : I claim no ownership of Doctor Who and any of its characters, places and so on and so forth. This is written purely for cheap entertainment purposes.

* * *

The gentle whooshing of the TARDIS core going up and down filled the time machine as she swirled through the time stream. Amy felt the excitement inside of her chest that always appeared whenever she heard that sound.

It meant going somewhere. It signified another grand fairytale with her boys. Another place in the whole wide Universe to see with her Raggedy Doctor and her Centurion, the one who would wait 2000 years just to go on another adventure with her. Amy smiled proudly down at the two most important men in her life as they skirted about the controls in the bridge of the TARDIS. Or the Doctor was skirting about. Rory was practically only moving when the Time Lord came floundering through and he wanted to avoid an arm in the face. By now they had travelled together long enough for both of the companions to know the Doctor's movements and routines, which meant it almost looked like a well-rehearsed dance whenever Rory moved out of the way as the Doctor rambled on, all the while pulling and pushing various buttons and controls.

"Turbocressilon-P863!" the Doctor yelled excitedly while pulling down a lever vigorously and the TARDIS hummed and bopped underneath his touch.

"Turbo-what-now?" Rory asked incredulously. Both Amy and Rory still believed the Doctor was pulling their tail with some of the planet names. A lot of them seemed so ludicrous and made-up it was impossible to believe. But so far, every name turned out to be true, as ridiculous as that might be.

"Turbocressilon-P863!" the Doctor said, just as rapidly as before.

Amy scoffed. _So doing that on purpose, aren't you?_

The Time Lord continued on, undeterred. "Wonderful planet! The water turns purple in sunlight and the grass turns blue! Although the sky remains completely the same as does the trees, which I never quite did figure out how. Quite a mystery, really. The last time I was there it did end rather abrupt and unfortunate so I didn't have the time to run any tests. Perhaps this time I could …"

"Doctor, you're rambling again," Amy interrupted plainly and crossed her arms.

"Ah, yes, thank you, Amy!" the Doctor said. He twisted and spun on his heel as he pushed an orange button up. "Onto my point! What was my point again? Ah, yes! The Parivians who inhabit this planet! Very friendly… Well, except on Reaping Festival but that's years away. Unless we passed the Centurion Moons on the way in which case it might be two minutes away or it could be months, but that is always the exciting part, isn't it?"

While the Doctor rambled he parked the TARDIS and both humans knew they had arrived on the planet Turbocressilon-P863. The Doctor stopped in front of the doors and turned to his companions, a childish, excited smirk on his lips. He looked like he always did before they went on a new adventure: like a young child on Christmas Eve.

"Shall we get going then?"

* * *

Bright light from a sun shone into Amy's eyes the minute she stepped outside the TARDIS.

Pleasant, calm silence filled her ears (highly uncommon when travelling with the Doctor) and she blinked expectedly, waiting for her eyes to adjust to the light. From the descriptions the Doctor had been enthusiastically rambling she expected no less than wonder. Perhaps she might have gotten high standards from the travels she'd already done but so far she had not been let down. However things had a habit of not being what they seemed on the surface, which was why Amy tried to remain uplifted when she was met with a rather disappointing sight.

She had expected grand and beautiful nature but what she got was … dull.

The earth they stood on and where the TARDIS had landed was sodden and light brown. Like it had been burned not too long ago. It was flat and open although it looked like trees and bushes might have existed here at some point. The earth itself seemed dry and dusty like everything precious and clean had been sucked out of it. In the far distance colors seemed to lurk but it was so far off, Amy was certain it was only her wishful thinking. At least the sky still maintained some color. It was a light bluish hue with almost-neon orange, fluffy clouds circling about in the flimsy breeze. Although the sun was shining brightly, the day seemed to be edging closer to the night.

Amy looked around and concluded the same, dull brownness seemed to stretch on in all directions. Her eyes met her husband's a few steps away and found that he shared her exact thinking.

"Doctor … Are you sure we're in the right spot?"

The Doctor looked up from where he had crouched down to examine the dust. He had a puzzled look on his face. His expectations clearly hadn't been met either.

"Am I sure we're in the right spot? Yes, of course I'm sure!" the Doctor muttered, exasperated. Then he rapidly collected a handful of dirt, put it to his mouth and licked it. He made a face. "Okay, now I'm sure. We're definitely on Turbocressilon-P863."

"Then where has the plants and water gone?" Rory voiced.

The Doctor rose to his feet and twirled around in circles in the barren, dusty field while holding out his sonic screwdriver. It whirled with sound as it scanned the area. He looked at it when he was done, eyebrows frowning as he read the data.

"It's like the molecules of the forests just evaporated. Or was sucked out." He clicked the screwdriver closed and looked around, frowning.

"How is that possible?" Amy asked.

"Oh, many options; Animatrics, the Circulettes, Genodrian winds …"

"Wind?" Rory asked, ambiguous.

" _Genodrian_ wind. Do try to keep up, Rory," the Doctor hastily muttered and then carried on like he hadn't been interrupted. "But none of those exist in this part of the Universe and to do it in such a scale! So I don't know. It shouldn't be possible at all."

He turned towards his companions, a joyful grin on his face.

"I have no idea. Isn't it wonderful?" he said cheerily. The Doctor glanced around again and made for a seemingly random direction. It was clear to both Amy and Rory that this latest development no doubt excited the Time Lord to no end, his mental gears already turning and clicking. Nothing would stop him in search of answers and the adventures they would hold.

His long legs quickly carried him off towards an unknown direction.

And the Ponds happily followed.

* * *

They walked for about an hour, with dust clinging to their shoes, before they exited the barren patch of soil.

During that time the Doctor had taken routinely scans of the area with the sonic screwdriver while he came up with and discarded about twenty different reasons of the cause. The only fact he didn't waver on was that the pattern seemed to be completely round. How he reached that conclusion, Amy wasn't entirely sure. But then again, she did tend to zone him out when he started conversing with himself so she might have missed it.

But they had watched as the tree line first appeared in the distance and then rapidly grew closer the further they came. Eventually the dusty soil underneath their feet made the sudden change to damp and firm. Large trees with thick trunks and full luscious crowns shot up from the rich earth. While they maintained the normal brown and green colour Amy recognized from Earth it seemed like nature's palette here was much more refined and the colours seemed clearer and brighter, much more beautiful.

"Now, that's more like it!" The Doctor had exclaimed as they walked on and more nature began appearing. They came across a small pond and true enough the water held the distinct colour purple and the grass was blowing blue in the meagre breeze. It looked stunning.

They continued their walk for another hour and a half where Amy thoroughly enjoyed the wondrous views they came across. Slowly the light was ebbing as the sun began to set. It cast warm orange light around and the shadows grew longer and longer.

Eventually they came closer to the planet centre where the planet natives resided, as the Doctor explained. Up ahead building outlines took shape. Not tall, shiny ones like in major Earth cities. Even from a distance they looked dusty and ragged. By now Amy's legs felt worn and she was both thirsty and hungry. One look at her husband and she knew he felt the same way. The Doctor however looked like he could carry on for another four-five hours, bouncing forward and full of energy.

"Ah, Parivia. It's the only inhabited spot on the entire planet. The Parivians never were a large people and they haven't spread much. Or far. Quite content to stay in their small patch of land, letting nature take care of its own. Not like you humans ... always spreading and treading, always seeking new places to explore," the Doctor marvelled, seeming lost in his own words.

"As long as they have food there, I don't much care where they go," Amy muttered, but loud enough for her words to reach the Doctor.

"It's always food with you, isn't it? But I have no doubt they will gladly give you something to eat. Remember to try the Kishnash! Absolutely heaven, I tell you!" The Doctor said and squinted as distorted figures seemed draw nearer in the waning light. "And here, it seems, comes the welcome committee. They really are a nice people!"

"Uh, Doctor," Rory hesitantly said. "I don't think normal welcome committees carry weapons. Or look that angry."

The figures had come closer and it was now possible to make their features. Six natives approached cautiously, all covered in khaki-coloured light clothing that flowed in the wind at their booted feet. Their skin was orange, but not the sharp neon colour of the clouds that dotted the sky. No, this was paler and calmer. Their orange complexion almost blended in with the fading sunlight shining on their faces, making it difficult to spot the carved lines that seemed to flow and curl beautifully on their face. It almost looked like old, long-healed wounds they had grotesquely cut onto themselves. And yet there was something so natural and gentle about them that looked like a part that belonged to them. When Amy looked at their arms, she could spot the same intricate markings trailing up and down, no doubt racing around on their entire bodies. Their shining blue eyes stood in stark contrast to the warm, golden light around them so they were easy to see. And they were practically swimming with fear and apprehension.

In their hands they held what could only be weapons. They looked like some form of blasters. God knew Amy had come face-to-face with plenty of them by now to identify one. They all pointed their barrels at the three newcomers, who had raised their hands in surrender.

"Not a welcoming committee then," the Doctor muttered as he stuck his hands in the air.

"Don't move!" one of the armed Parivians ordered. His tone was level and firm. He was wide around his shoulders and seemed to shine with authority. As he took two steps towards them the rest of the Parivians moved in synchrony with him. He was clearly the one in command here.

"State your name and business here," he commanded.

The Doctor was unsurprisingly the first one to speak, seemingly undeterred by the weapon pointed in his face and the stern look of the armed Parivian in front of him. His voice was all happy like it usually was. Completely inappropriate for the situation. "I'm the Doctor! These are my friends, Amy and Rory. Say hello, Amy and Rory!"

"Hi."

"Hey."

"Well, don't choke on all the enthusiasm, Ponds," The Doctor muttered disappointedly without turning in their direction.

"The doctor? Doctor who?" the Parivian suspiciously asked.

"Just the Doctor," the Time Lord calmly answered.

"Doctor who?" the man before them demanded again. His finger tightened around the trigger of his weapon and his whole body stood rigid and alert. "State your full name and intentions, Doctor!"

"You wouldn't survive hearing my full name," the Doctor genuinely stated, his eyes serious.

"I've heard enough. Bring them in!" the Parivian sternly replied. It wasn't directed at the strangers in front of him but rather at the guards at his back.

Like synchronised waves the armed Parivians moved backwards as one of them took out a silver spherical device and tossed it to the ground. It rolled and landed neatly right in between the Doctor and his companions.

The Doctor opened his mouth, a warning just about to escape his lips but that was all he managed to do. The sphere beeped once as an electrical blue colour lit up the circular patterns on its surface. Then it discharged. Both Time Lord and humans were sent flying through the air. Amy felt the energy of the metal ball rush towards her and tear her off her feet. She hit the ground hard when she landed. She felt herself roll onto her back as she came to a stop. Her head was ringing and her body suddenly ached with a heaviness that seemed to spread out to her limbs.

Before she lost consciousness she saw Rory and the Doctor fly in opposite directions in much the same way she did and then slam into the dirt. None of them moved a muscle as they landed.

And then the darkness came and swept her away too.

 **TBC**


	2. A Doctor That Never Sleeps

**Chapter Title** : A Doctor That Never Sleeps

 **Disclaimer** : I claim no ownership of Doctor Who and any of its characters, places and so on and so forth. This is written purely for cheap entertainment purposes.

* * *

Rory slowly came to, like being pulled through murky waters until you finally breached the surface where you could breathe in the fresh air. But instead of gasping for breath while he delicately opened his eyes he only groaned deeply. His body ached and he didn't know if it came from impacting with the hard ground or being tossed into the air from the spherical device. All he knew was that he felt sore all over. The harsh, cool surface he was spread out on certainly didn't help matters either.

"Amy?" he croaked. He turned his head slowly to the right and relief instantly swept through him as he spotted his wife lying by his side. Her head was turned away from him and she wasn't moving at first.

"Amy?" he tried again and was rewarded with an instant groan, not unlike the one he had just uttered only seconds ago. Her head turned and her red hair spread out on the ground like a ginger pillow, encircling her face.

"Ow ..." she grunted as she blinked open her eyes. She was looking up at the gray ceiling as she tried to get her bearings and then she turned her green eyes towards him. "Rory? Where are we?"

Rory gingerly sat up, hearing his muscles of his battered body crack and complain as he did. But the soreness had already started to fade and he felt more and more like himself as the seconds ticked by. Soon all of it would disappear and he could think clearly. He got a good look at their surroundings.

The place was made almost entirely of concrete, the walls and floor all a dull gray colour. Some of it had chipped away as time had passed and gray dust had gathered in every corner and spread out to cover the floor. No doubt it coated the back of their clothes as well. They had been tossed in a cell, where absolutely no furniture had been placed to make it comfortable. It was completely bare. A small, rectangular window with iron bars sat in the middle of the wall to his left, but no light shone in through it so Rory guessed night had fallen outside. To his right there was no wall, only a set of thick, rusted iron bars to keep them in. On the other side was another cell and through the bars Rory could make out another figure lying in the dust, their hands tied together by a pair of metal handcuffs. There was just enough light to make out the dark boots and blue bowtie.

"Doctor?" Amy had spotted him at the same time Rory did.

Her voice seemed to have an instant effect.

The Doctor gasped and his upper body shot up from the floor. "Pears!" He looked around confused until his eyes fell on his two companions across from his cell, looking at him questioningly.

"Ponds!" he exclaimed with a relieved smile. "You two alright?"

"Yeah, you?" Amy answered.

"Positively excellent. Except the recent nightmare about pears .. Disgusting little buggers. Oh, and my hands seemed to be tied together. Interesting," the Doctor said and examined his bound hands. "Your hands are free however, which means they know about me."

He tried getting to his feet, which proved a difficult endeavour with handcuffs on but in the end he clumsily managed to rise. With his hands secured, he patted down his coat with his arms to the best of his ability. "And they took my sonic screwdriver as well. Smart. I hate smart unless I'm the one doing it."

The Doctor moved to the bars and looked out in the hall, up and down as best he could.

"Doctor, where are we?" Rory asked. He had moved to the bars as well and both he and Amy now stood with their hands encircling each iron bar.

"Well, my guess would be a Parivian dungeon," the Doctor said while he manoeuvred his hands to test his bonds. They didn't budge.

"Thanks, we figured that out ourselves," Rory drily remarked.

"Then you know as much as I do, Rory. Saviour it. It doesn't happen often." The Doctor continued searching the dungeon with his eyes, looking for anything that could help them. But the iron cells didn't respond to pushing or pulling and without the sonic to unlock the doors there wasn't much to be done.

"Why have they locked us in here, you think? I thought you said they were friendly," Amy asked.

"They are ... for the most part. Perhaps something has them running scared, which is causing them to lash out. My guess would be it has something to do with the burned patch of dirt we landed in," the Doctor answered.

The sound of keys jiggling and a wooden door squeaking open stopped their little conversation.

"Ah, finally some answers!" the Doctor remarked joyfully as a flickering light briefly filled the hallway until shadowed figured appeared. They came closer rapidly, their boots echoing on the concrete floor. Three orange-skinned Parivians stopped in front of their cells. A man and a woman wore the same khaki garments as the guards that had attacked them earlier at the outskirts of town. Their weapons was at least not pointed at them but only secured at their sides. The woman standing in the middle however wore a slightly different outfit. It was still loose-fitting and flowing but it had intricate patterns of gold, silver and bronze sewed into the brightly coloured fabric. It looked more delicate and no doubt indicated a high-positioned leader. She carried herself proudly and tall and commanded an air of respect. Her blond hair had been pulled back from her face.

Her kind, brilliant blue eyes, characterising of all Parivians, landed on each of the travellers in turn until they finally rested on the Time Lord.

"Doctor," she spoke formally. "Let me apologize for the terrible welcome we have given you."

She turned her head briefly to one of the guards by her side. "Release them. They are not a threat."

The guards hastily followed her order and opened up for both cells. Amy and Rory gingerly stepped out of their confinement, still edgy about what was going on. The Doctor's cell was the last one to be open and as soon as he stepped out, one of the guards grabbed the metal handcuffs and starting unlocking them. The Time Lord looked at the still weapon hanging off the guard's belt with disdain.

The female commander continued speaking, her eyes never leaving the Doctor's face. "I hope you can forgive us our transgressions, Doctor. Parivia has been quite on edge lately and our Captain of the Guard reacted purely out of precaution."

The Doctor's handcuffs finished getting unlocked and fell away. He rubbed his wrists as he spoke, eyeing the leader in front of him with a curious gaze. "Yes, well, we did kind of pop up, didn't we ... Anyway, all's forgiven. You seem to know who I am, but I can't seem to recall ever meeting you. And I'm very good with faces, I'll have you know."

"Of course. I am Kharli," she responded with a kind smile that stretched the lines on her orange-skinned face. "Commander of Parivia. And as every Commander before me, I was taught about the Doctor. A man capable of changing his face but never his eyes, who came in a time of need and saved our planet back when we could not do so ourselves. A man with powerful abilities and a kind heart."

Amy flashed a smile. That sounded like her raggedy Doctor. The Time Lord sent her a quick look before returning his eyes to Kharli. "Two of them actually, not sure which is the kind one, never bothered finding out. Well then, Kharli of the Parivians, I do believe my companions here would like some supper if you have some."

"Of course. You must be starving," Kharli responded and flashed a brilliant smile at Amy and Rory. "Follow me."

* * *

Kharli and the two guards led them out of the dungeon, which turned out to be nothing more than an old gray building, hidden away in a dark alleyway. The alley led them out into the open street, lined with more gray or brown buildings that looked almost as torn and ramshackle as the dungeons with wooden doors and rectangular holes serving as windows, covered with only pieces of different-coloured fabrics that swayed in the wind. There was no light shining in any of them.

The streets seemed quiet with only a few Parivians rumbling about as Kharli escorted them through the town.

"So, what is this about a threat? Last time I checked, Parivia rarely makes enemies. Too far away from ... well, everything," the Doctor promptly asked. Amy was surprised he had managed to keep quiet until they reached open streets. He was clearly bursting with curiosity.

Kharli looked to be debating with herself whether or not she could entrust her problems to these strangers. She gave in rather quickly. The Doctor could have that effect. "It started with the burned nature. Did you spot the barren wasteland on your way here?"

"Big, desert-like circle. Practically landed on top of it," Rory commented.

"Then you have seen it. It appeared one day not too long ago. We turned in for the night with nothing out of the ordinary and when we woke up the reports starting coming in from wanderers. A circular, barren spot burned right into our land. We have had four Parivians gone missing. They left for water or to take a hike, no one knows exactly what or which direction they went in but they haven't been seen or heard from since. And on top of everything we are dealing with the warmest temperatures ever recorded on the planet and our crops have suffered for it." Kharli's voice was grave and the desperation and fear was palpable to all present. She did not understand and that clearly scared her tremendously.

"So they were never found. How long ago was this?" the Doctor questioned.

"6 days ago. The burned ground appeared 10 days ago. We've all been anxious since, which is why Vestor, our Captain, reacted so harshly when you arrived."

"Understandable," the Doctor muttered. "Foolish, but understandable."

They turned and twisted around corners and alleyways. It was easy to get lost and Amy already lost track of where they had been and where they were going, instead she just followed, vaguely listening to the Doctor and Kharli talk of Parivia. Her eyes drifted upwards where she easily spotted the white stars and three moons hanging in the dark sky. One star in particular caught her eye. It looked bigger than the others and shone brighter too. When she almost bumped into Rory, she stopped looking up and started paying attention to where her feet were placed.

20 minutes after they left the dungeons they stopped in front of building larger than the rest. It looked like a mansion and seemed newer and whiter than any of the others. Pillars lined the walls and had a large door with one armed guard standing in front. He looked up as they approached but when he spotted his leader he relaxed quickly again and only nodded as they went up the small staircase. He did however send a few suspicious looks at the Doctor, Amy and Rory as they walked past.

They entered a grand hall, a stairway leading up to the first floor and open doorways to both the right and the left. Kharli stopped and turned to her guests.

"I have had rooms prepared for you on the first floor to the right, in case you need it. The town market will open in a few hours if you can wait with your supper until then. Fresh food is always better. Until then I offer you my house to freshen up."

"Thank you," Amy responded.

"Now if you'll excuse me. I shall see you in the morning," Kharli said and with a quick smile she turned to the right and walked out of the hall, her two guards in tow.

The three travellers went up the stairs and to the right. The doors to their rooms had been left open for them to find. Two rooms opposite each other, an oak door leading into each. Amy and Rory began to enter one room while the Doctor remained in the carpeted hall.

"You two get some rest and we'll see each other in the morning," the Doctor said.

"And where'll you be going?" Amy asked suspiciously, stopping in the doorway.

"Of on adventure, of course," the Doctor mischievously smiled. "Goodnight, Ponds."

With that, the Time Lord twirled on his feet and went down the hallway towards the staircase. Amy and Rory looked down after him.

Amy turned to her husband with the question written all over her face. Rory simply shrugged. "Let him go, Amy. I'm sure we'll know if he does something stupid."

Amy pondered his words. Whenever the Doctor wandered off certain things did always tend to happen. But she could feel the pull of the king-size bed standing in the middle of the room as well. The thought of simply lying down and sleep sounded suddenly extremely alluring.

She sighed and only nodded tiredly. She and Rory didn't even undress. They simply collapsed onto the bed, snuggled up against each other and within a few seconds both breathed heavily as sleep took them.

* * *

It seemed to Amy that she had barely placed her head on the pillow before someone was shaking her awake.

Not surprisingly, it was the Doctor, standing above her with childish excitement shining out of his face. "Come on, Ponds! The sun is up!"

Amy groaned and blinked the sleep out of her eyes. "How long have we slept?" she muttered as Rory stretched beside her.

"One hour, maybe two. I am not entirely sure the amount of time we wasted in that dungeon," the Doctor casually stated as he tore the curtains away from the windows. The sun was well on its way to the high spot in the sky so there was suddenly plenty light in the bedroom.

"Only a couple of hours? It looked pretty dark out last night," Rory spoke.

"The nights here only lasts about five hours," the Doctor clarified. He went to the mirror in the corner of the room and started adjusting his bowtie.

"That doesn't leave much for sleep," Amy grunted tiredly. She was not a morning person and the Doctor's seemingly endless energy always got on her nerves whenever she was even a little sleep-deprived.

Satisfied with his outfit the Doctor turned away from the mirror and instead to her. "Actually Parivians are one of the few species in the Universe who rarely needs more than two hours of sleep."

"Them and Time Lords," Amy muttered.

"Well, who would want to sleep half their life away? How boring! Sleep is for amateurs and humans! Yuck!" the Doctor made a face at her. Then he clasped his hands together. "Anyhow! Who's hungry?"

* * *

The Doctor led them through the same streets they had walked on only a couple of hours before. However they ended up in quite a different place. The street suddenly opened up into a huge plaza where the town market, which Kharli had mentioned in the night, took place. Wooden stands were set up all around the square, big cloths stretched over both the stands and the ground to offer some shade from the burning sun over the heads of both shoppers and sellers alike.

The plaza was already buzzing with activity. Here and there several Parivians scuttled from one booth to another. They weren't the only ones there. With their carved patterns on their orange skin they were easy to make out and therefore it was even easier to spot the strangers. Aliens of all sorts and species bustled about; one that looked like a mixture between a man and a marshmallow, another which resembled a humanoid fly, a third one who resembled nothing Amy had ever seen before. A behemoth green creature, with its head all but melting into the rest of the body, almost crashed directly into Amy had she not jumped out of the way in time, practically tackling Rory in the process.

"Excuse you," Amy called after the creature, but it only continued to grunt its way through the crowd, much to Rory's immediate relief.

They spent the following hours browsing as much of the Market as they could. The Doctor spent almost all of it talking. Explaining the legends and stories of some of the items they came across, speaking of the food and drink they bought. There was so much to see and touch and every seller they encountered was welcoming and polite, their blue eyes sparkling with kindness. They were more than happy to share out of their own, personal tales. Every face fell however whenever they were asked of the current troubles. They all sadly reported the same things. The disappearances, the increasing heat and all the problems that followed with it. But none could speak of any solution or cause.

Eventually they found a quiet place to sit down for awhile while they enjoyed what the Doctor referred to as a juice but Amy couldn't for the life of her determine what kind of fruit was in it. She didn't think she would want to know. It was fresh and sweet and that's all she needed to know.

"That one," she said and pointed towards an alien creature covered with yellow and blue scales and peculiar clothing. She took a sip of her surprisingly refreshing juice and turned an expecting gaze at the Doctor. Rory was leaned back in his chair, barely paying attention. He had pulled out of their little game 45 minutes ago and was simply enjoying the relaxation of the market.

The Doctor only glimpsed at the creature before turning back to her. "That is a Regiusilian of the planet Slangicia. A terrible people. Always strangling one another for kicks and laughs. I went there once and I do believe that is the shortest time I have ever voluntarily spent on a planet. Fun fact about the Regiusilians, they mate using-"

The Doctor never got to complete his sentence.

Tearing through the tranquil noise of the town market echoed a piercing, terrified scream.

 **TBC**


	3. An Inner Terror On a Shining Night

**Chapter Title** : An Inner Terror On a Shining Night

 **Disclaimer** : I claim no ownership of Doctor Who and any of its characters, places and so on and so forth. This is written purely for cheap entertainment purposes.

* * *

As the scream resonated through the plaza, the Doctor tore out of his seat and immediately made his way through the crowd towards the origin. Amy and Rory shared a quick look - " _here we go again_ "- before they too raced after the Doctor.

They found him only a couple of seconds later as the street opened up into the open air as they exited the town. It was difficult to get your bearings among the buildings of Parivia but the market was apparently placed on the edge. Amy and Rory looked around for anything suspicious. Most of that involved keeping your eye out for the Doctor. They did found him where the trouble was but with or without him present it would have been hard to miss. The pained screams were emanating from the Parivian woman, thrashing on the ground. The Doctor was crouched above her, muttering comforting words and holding her hand tightly as she twisted in agony. Her orange, carved face was blistered and raw and her clothes were singed and the light orange skin underneath burned in various degrees. It covered most of her body.

"Somebody get the healer!" the Doctor yelled out at the gathering crowd. The strength of his demanding voice sent several aliens scattering away.

"Doctor?" Amy gently inquired as she knelt down beside him. Her eyes were unable to leave the burned Parivian.

Rory wasn't so withdrawn. He settled on the other side of the woman as he took her other arm and placed two fingers tightly on her wrist. He was silent, concentrating, for a full minute. The only sound was only the woman's groans and yelps. She didn't seem to have the energy to scream anymore.

"I think she's going into shock. Her heart's beating like crazy … She does only have the one, right?" he raised an eyebrow at the Doctor.

"Only the one, although her inner structure might be slightly different from what you've learned on human physiology."

"Can you fix her?" Amy asked. This time her gaze focused completely on her husband.

Rory opened his mouth only to close it again. Eventually he opened it again, an apologetic look on his face. "I have no idea where to start. I don't know anything about their bodies. Like the Doctor said, I'm not familiar with the physiology. I could end up killing her … Although I don't think she has long no matter what I do."

Amy looked at him with devastation but it wasn't disappointment for not being able to save the woman before them. The devastation was for her fate but also for him because she knew how hard he would take it. That there was nothing he could do and Amy didn't blame him. Rory was saved from doing much else as the crowd parted and suddenly they were joined by another Parivian. This one was older than the ones they had already been introduced to. Her frizzy, curled hair had turned grey and her orange skin was wrinkled, the natural markings turned slightly distorted. Her blue eyes seemed kind even as she inspected the Parivian with a disheartened gaze. She seemed oddly familiar although Amy had no idea where she could have seen her.

"Shanra, my dear, what happened to you?" the old woman whispered and gently caressed the other's hair. With the old woman was also two male Parivians, who stood by her side. She needed only to snap her fingers once and they moved. They seemed to know exactly what she wanted. In a way, they were like her companions. Except these were quieter and did what they were told. The two men folded out the thick sheet they had brought along and placed it on the ground next the thrashing Shanra. As they gently tried to pick her up and put her on the sheet, the old woman turned to the rising time travelers.

"I'm Madge, the healer," she quickly introduced with a sombre voice.

"Will she be okay?" Amy quickly asked.

"I don't know, dear," Madge gravelly responded. The men began carrying the burned woman through the crowd and as Madge made to follow, she tossed quite a knowing look at the Doctor and said, "We shall talk later."

Then they made their way through the crowd, her pained sounds growing weaker and weaker with every step. Rory looked after them with an almost longing look and then turned back to his wife. "I'm …"

"Just go, stupid," Amy only said. Rory smiled gratefully at her and he made to leave. Amy quickly grabbed him by the hand, dragged him towards her and kissed him as hard as she could. "Be safe."

Rory then bolted after the healer and their precious cargo.

"Okay, you have now kept your mouth unnaturally closed for 5 minutes," Amy commented and spun rapidly around to face the Doctor, who stood absolutely still and stared seemingly into nothing. "Which I think for you is a personal record."

The Doctor snapped his head towards her. He seemed transfixed on her suddenly, staring at her with an intense look of something she couldn't identify. And before she could properly figure out what it was, he turned on his heel and stalked in the other direction. He didn't head into town again but rather in the exact opposite direction, heading for the trees.

"Doctor?" Amy called but the Time Lord did not stop. She instantly ran after him.

She caught up with him with her own long legs and stepped right in front him, effectively stopping him in his tracks if he wanted to avoid crashing into her. She stared him down hard.

"Doctor, what's wrong?"

The Time Lord stood before her, uncertain and almost timid. His eyes shone of the old age and every memory that came with that privilege of being that ancient. It was one she had rarely seen on his face and the few times she did, it scared her. She knew it was a crack in the façade of his, one he didn't want other people to see, especially those travelling with him. He saw it as a weakness, she knew, and he thought no one would believe in or trust him ever again if they saw his weakness. And that was why it scared her that he let her see it now.

"One day," he muttered to her and slumped down on a nearby rock.

"One day?" Amy inquired curiously. She wasn't exactly sure where this was going.

"We have been here for a single day and already death has followed me here," the Doctor said. He wasn't looking at her anymore, only staring intently on the blue grass at his feet.

"She isn't dead yet, you know," Amy confidently said. She sat down next to her Doctor. "Anyway, you didn't burn her, did you? That's hardly your fault."

"Amy, don't you understand … It always follows. No matter how far I travel or how fast, death and destruction always keeps up, knocking on my door. My constant companion."

"You think this is your fault?" Amy said incredulously. "You think that whatever is happening to these poor Paruvians-"

"Parivians."

"Whatever." Amy got up from the rock so she could properly stare down the Doctor. "You believe you brought death and destruction on these people? Why? The burned patch, people disappearing … All of that had already happened by the time we landed. It has nothing to do with you, Doctor and if you believe that then you're as stupid as you look! You don't bring death. You bring hope. You did for me and Rory. And I've watched you do for it for so many people in the Universe. You've already done it for these people once. And you can do it again. So get off your arse and start helping them!"

The Doctor only stared at her, his eyes desperately searching her face for anything to suggest she was lying. But she believed every word she said and she could only hope she could make him believe it too. Silence stretched on for awhile until a small smile broke out on his face and he suddenly looked at her with a new kindling in his eyes that had seemed burned out only a minute earlier.

"You are stubborn, aren't you?"

"I'm Scottish," Amy shrugged.

"Right you are," the Doctor smirked. He looked around at the tranquil nature all around him, taking it all in. Tranquillity and silence normally didn't set well with the Doctor but somehow the shining trees and diverse odd wildlife fluttering about, making noise, held a calming effect. Amy didn't move or speak, letting him have the calm for as long as he needed it.

The sun was on its way down, casting long shadows onto the ground. Slowly the grass was turning from their blue colour to a dark green. The Doctor observed the change with silent interest. He sighed as he rapidly rose to his feet. The facade had slipped back into its place on his face and all evidence of the broken-hearted, old Time Lord from before vanished completely, a smile plastered to his face.

"So, I do believe we have a doctor's appointment to keep!" He immediately began making his way towards the rugged town. As he tore past Amy, he suddenly stopped short a few steps in front of her. Then he backtracked quickly and pulled her into a bone-crushing hug. She gladly accepted it and tried to squeeze back equally hard, letting him know she would always be there.

"Doctor?" she said into his ear.

"Yeah?"

"Gotcha."

* * *

By the time they got back into town the sun had just dipped past the horizon and the warm flames of candlelight shone in almost every window. Big lanterns lit up the streets the Doctor and Amy walked upon as they headed in a direction unknown to Amy.

The Time Lord seemed to know exactly which way to go however so she allowed him to pull her this way and that until they found themselves standing in front of a grey cottage-like building, a thick, red carpet acting as the door. Light shone out from the windows and underneath the carpet, swinging slightly just above the dirt. Before they could enter the fabric swung aside to reveal a tired-looking Rory. He looked up at the pair standing in front of him and almost jumped with surprise.

"Amy, Doctor," he greeted warily.

"Rory, how is she?" Amy asked as she squeezed her way past the Doctor.

Rory's eyes fell at the question and when he looked back at his wife it was with a disheartened gaze. "We couldn't save her. Someone came to collect her an hour ago. I think it was her wife."

Amy swallowed heavily and wrapped her arms tightly around his torso. She knew how hard he took every life he couldn't save. She placed her head on his shoulder so that she could look over at the Doctor, who only stared back at her with dismay. No doubt he felt the death just as heavily as Rory did. Her two boys ... always carrying the life and welfare of others on their shoulders.

"Madge? Is she in there with you?" the Doctor asked as the Ponds pulled away from the hug, although they didn't let go of each other entirely.

"Yeah. You should have seen her, Doctor. She was incredible."

"I did have help, my dear boy," a voice echoed from the open doorway. Madge with her warm smile and kind eyes. Amy was once again struck by the familiarity but she still couldn't place her. "Do come in. I have been expecting you."

Madge handed the steaming cup of tea to Amy, who took it gratefully and let the warm settle over her.

She was sitting close to the fire with Rory in the chair beside her, each with a clay cup filled with an unknown tea. They were sitting by the fire place where the warm flames filled the small cottage with heat and shed an orange light on everything in the large room. Red, woven carpets lined some of the walls and floor to cover the normally dull, grey colour of the building. A single, open doorway led to the adjacent room where several cots for patients had been lined up. Against one wall stood a large desk, littered with wrinkled papers and various vials containing liquids and dried vegetation. Many more vials filled a cabinet next to the desk. The Doctor stood before it, his eyes and fingers examining every vial he came across.

He picked up one containing a glowing green liquid and turned to look at Madge with it in hand and a delighted expression.

"Where in the history of the Universe did you manage to locate Nectar of Persuvious?"

"That was a gift," Madge simply replied with a coy smile. She sat down on a wooden bench and leaned against the carpeted wall, her old eyes never leaving the Time Lord's face. "So, Doctor, what brings you to our corner of the Universe?"

"Just in the neighbourhood, thought I'd pop by, see the sights," the Doctor cheekily answered and the nodded towards his two companions. "My friends here have never seen your beautiful planet."

"Then I fear you have chosen the wrong time to come, my dears," Madge wistfully sighed.

"Why's that?" Rory questioned.

"The drought. It's the warmest I can remember it ever being. Our crops are drying out, our people suffering. I have had twice as many patients in here than usual," Madge explained, her voice dejected. "People are disappearing or returning with burns on their skin with no explanation as to how they got there."

"And your wise leader? What does she has to say about it?" the Doctor inquired, still fidgeting with a vial.

"Kharli does the best she can with what she is given," Madge confidently answered.

At the mention of Kharli's name, Amy perked up. The confidence in Madge's voice and the proud, steel of her eyes and suddenly Amy knew exactly why she seemed so familiar. "Kharli's your daughter. Isn't she?"

Madge smiled knowingly at her. "You are a perceptive one, aren't you? Yes, Kharli is my daughter and she has been making me proud leading our people for many years now."

"How did she end up with the job? I mean, she obviously wasn't born into it ..." Rory said.

"None of our Commanders are born to their privilege. They are selected by the people. My daughter was chosen when she matured and has been guiding and protecting us ever since. But I still worry about her. I don't think she knows how to handle this. None of us do."

"Then perhaps we did land at the right time after all," the Doctor replied with certainty. The confidence was shining out of him and Amy knew her raggedy doctor was determined to save the Parivians and figure out what was transpiring on Turbocressilon-P863.

He stormed out of Madge's home without a glance back. Amy and Rory quickly put down their clay mugs and stood to follow.

"Thanks for the tea," Amy called as they hurried out the exit as well.

Neither of them caught Madge's amused headshake or her muttered: "Children."

* * *

Amy and Rory followed the Doctor past the grey buildings and down the long streets. The town was just as dark as the night before, with only a few lights shining here and there in the windows. Instead the night sky with its many stars and three big moons lit the way for them.

Rory cast his gaze upwards and a small smile pulled at his lips.

"It is beautiful," he commented.

"Yes, yes, you can marvel at the sky later," the Doctor quickly said up ahead. He didn't even bother looking back. "Right now, we're busy."

Rory had long ago learned to tune out the Doctor's sarcastic comments so he carried on undeterred. This time he only spoke to Amy. " _That_ is a big star."

Amy followed his finger to where it was pointing. When she looked up however she found she didn't need the helping hand. It wasn't difficult to find what he was staring at. It was extremely familiar as she herself had noticed it last night when they walked out of that dungeon. There was something off about it. It didn't take long to find out what.

"I saw that one last night. Although it almost seemed like it's grown."

"What?"

"What?" the Doctor was next to her all of sudden. How or when he had appeared, she had no idea. "Amy, are you sure?"

"Yeah," Amy didn't hesitate. "I remember thinking it was bigger than the others even then. But it's definitely grown a couple of sizes."

"Amy, you wonderful little stargazer!" the Doctor exclaimed. He grabbed her cheeks and kissed her forehead hard. Then he spun on his heel and continued on in the direction he had come from. "Come along, Ponds!"

"Where're we going?" Amy called after him.

"To figure out if size does matter!"

 **TBC**


	4. A Starry, Starry Day

**Chapter Title** : A Starry, Starry Day

 **Author's note** : I just want to say thank you to those who have taken the time to review and support this story. It's nice to know someone is enjoying it :-)

Anywho, the Doctor is onto something, but doesn't quite know what it is yet! Will he figure it out? Read to find out!

 **Disclaimer** : I claim no ownership of Doctor Who and any of its characters, places and so on and so forth. This is written purely for cheap entertainment purposes.

* * *

The Doctor clearly had no remorse about waking up the residents of the mansion. He waited impatiently in the grand living room while the others got out of their beds. He even had the audacity to look offended when Kharli and her two advisors appeared in their night clothes and with rumpled hair, their brilliant blue eyes hidden behind sleepy squints.

Amy felt sorry for the Parivians. It seemed almost cruel to wake these people, seeing as how they only slept for about two hours every night. They probably needed the few hours they got.

Vestor, the Captain of the Guard who they encountered when they first arrived, and the two bodyguards assigned to Kharli were the only ones fully dressed in their gear, looking like they hadn't even napped. They stood with their backs erect and eyes alert. Vestor was eyeing the Doctor in particular, tracking his movements carefully. He didn't seem to fully trust the Time Lord yet, although Kharli had vouched for him.

"So, Doctor. Care to answer as to why you have gathered us here an hour before the dawn?" Kharli asked. Her blond hair wasn't neatly gathered like before but had fanned out at her shoulders. She hugged her night gown closer to her body.

"The burned circle, the disappearing Parivians ... Tell me again, when did it all start?" the Doctor asked. He paced back and forth, in between the furniture and people.

"I can't be certain of the exact date but the patch appeared some 10 days ago, like I said."

"Right. And the rising temperatures? Did that happen gradually or was that sudden as well?" he continued on.

"I can't be certain but it seemed quite sudden." Kharli looked at her advisors for confirmation.

"One day the reports began flowing in about burned citizens and scorched harvest," one of them, an elder male, elaborated.

"And when exactly did that happen? You must know, you're the Commander. Nothing happens here without you knowing. Think! It's important," the Doctor urged. He stepped closer to the Parivian Commander.

"Okay. 11 days since Parivia began to suffer. I am certain of it."

"And immediately the food went bad? The people got burned?"

"Yes."

"Doctor, do you know what's happening? What's causing this?" Amy asked. She could practically see his brain churning. He had that look on his face when he was onto something and he had been carrying that stupid face since the big star.

"I have an inkling. No, more of a sensation. Or a feeling. Or a knowledge," the Doctor stopped short. "Never mind, yes, an inkling. Oh, it doesn't matter which. We need to go back to the TARDIS."

* * *

The sun had risen from above the horizon by the time they were halfway to the TARDIS. It bathed everything in a vast golden light and all around them the nature started waking up. Odd-looking flying creatures and small critters whiskered about and the dark grass had begun their turn from green to their blue hue.

Rory's eye caught a nest of golden flowers, whose leaves were in the process of turning turning blue along with the grass. He gingerly plucked one and as it left its connection with the earth the colour process stopped, the leaves half green and half blue. He offered it to Amy, who took it with a tender smile.

From there it didn't take long to reach the outskirts of the circular burned patch. The scorched earth was still there, dusty and dull. A stark contrast to the vast nature they had just walked through. The Doctor was a few meters ahead of the Ponds, his eager steps almost always putting him in front. Amy and Rory kept a steady pace to keep up with him until suddenly it seemed he came to a stop. The blue police box that was the TARDIS loomed in the distance.

They found him standing ahead of them, his back turned and seemingly staring intently at the ground by his feet. Amy gingerly stepped around him, anxious to see what had him stunned. Rory was right behind her. Whatever she had expected it wasn't that. In front of her was a body, clearly Parivian. It was clear from the orange skin with the curved lines but the similarities stopped there. It looked completely drained of any fluid. The skin had sagged to hug close to the bones and muscles, distorting the flowing carved lines that were normally elegant and beautiful. The eyes were closed but Amy doubted there were even eyes left to protect. The dried face seemed locked in a petrified scream.

"It looks like it was one of the guards," Rory commented in a low voice, noticing the garb that hugged the dead Parivian. The sandy-coloured clothes looked singed in some places.

"It's getting worse," the Doctor muttered as he scanned the dried body with the sonic screwdriver. When he was done, he simply said, "Come on."

It was a forlorn mood that filled the control room when they entered the TARDIS. The Doctor in particular seemed in a sour state of mind but given their conversation yesterday, Amy wasn't surprised. Her long fingers fiddled with the golden flower Rory had plucked for her as she watched her Doctor pull and press almost every component of the console. He pulled the accelerator and Amy felt the TARDIS moving.

"Doctor, where are we going?" Amy carefully asked.

"I have some theories. Well, I have one theory," the Doctor answered in his normal, inquisitive voice. It seemed putting some distance between him and the dead body helped on his mood. He pulled up another lever and the TARDIS parked with a 'dong'. "Here we are."

"Then let's go out and have a look," Amy excitedly said and immediately went for the double doors. Rory followed her close by. She grabbed a hold of the handle and pulled.

"Amy, don't!"

The Doctor's warning came one millisecond too late. Amy opened the doors and instantly her eyes were assaulted with an intense light. It burned its way onto her retina and all she felt was a deep pain racing from her eyes and into her head. She felt herself falling to the floor and heard Rory's pained outburst mixing with her own. She was unable to see anything but a sharp, yellow brightness. It seemed like this was now her life. This burning agony and yellow light.

It felt like an eternity but in reality the burning sensation only lasted a second. Amy felt the pain slowly ebb away and dark began etching its way back into her vision. While she lay there, getting her bearings, she heard the Doctor's boots echo on the TARDIS floor and the doors' violent noise as they were slammed closed.

"When will you two learn to do as you're told?" he exclaimed and moved away.

Amy blinked open for eyes, satisfied that she could actually see albeit everything held a kind of amber tint. She gingerly sat up and felt Rory stirring in much the same way.

"What the hell was that?" she angrily turned towards the Time Lord, who starting disappearing underneath the control room in search of something.

"A complicated life form with quite a brilliant appearance!" his voice yelled at her from below.

He returned as Amy and Rory got to their feet. He had donned a pair of black goggles and with an energetic smile held up two more pairs in each hand.

"You're gonna need these! Impossible to look at up close without some form of eye protection," he explained and went for the door. He stood there with a grin plastered on his face waiting for his companions to put on the goggles.

When they did, he opened the doors and they all squeezed together in the doorway to take a peek at the creature below.

At first glance it looked like a normal burning star. It glowed with a mixture of bright amber and orange and the colours seemed to swirl around on the surface, interlacing with each other. The warmth from it wafted up at their faces and a stiff wind tore at their hair and clothes.

"It just looks like a star," Rory remarked loudly.

"Look closer!" the Doctor yelled back.

Both humans stared intently at the star below them. The colours swirled and pulled at each other. Amy opened her mouth to ask what they were looking for when she saw it. The amber and orange hues didn't just twirl randomly about, it seemed like they moved purposefully. Like they were alive. Like this star-like thing was alive. When she actually looked closer at it she could see all the ways it differed from any normal star she had ever seen. By now, she had seen enough of them to know what set them apart individually and from other space objects.

"It sort of seems ... alive," Amy yelled her thoughts out loud.

"Exactly! That's because it is!"

"If it's not a star, why didn't we land on it then?" Rory asked over the roar of the wind.

"I'm not landing my TARDIS on it!" the Doctor answered incredulously. "That down there is a living creature! How would you feel if someone pulled up and started riding your back? Besides we would probably be burned to ashes if we tried to get closer. I highly doubt the TARDIS would even let us get that close!"

He pulled away from the doorway and closed the TARDIS doors as soon as Amy and Rory moved out of the way too. He moved to the console once again, the goggles placed on his forehead where they further tangled his already wild hair. He started pushing and pulling the knobs and levers again to get the TARDIS moving.

Amy pulled hers down to rest at her throat. "Doctor, what was that thing?"

"An Astrodella. One of the biggest ones I've ever seen!"

"What - or who - is an Astrodella?" Rory continued. He wasn't exactly satisfied with that explanation.

"Astrodellas are a basically a star. Well no, that's slightly wrong. It looks like one from the planets they're orbiting and acts like one as well. No, that's also wrong. Forget I said that." The Doctor looked almost perplexed as he started fiddling with the console screen.

"Anyhow, Astrodellas lives off of energy, mostly from water-like molecules. They are normally quite harmless. The ones usually found around planets are too small to do any real damage. Earth actually has a couple of them without any problems. Well, there was some touch and go moments for a few decades when you humans started mucking up the planet with all your greedy need to own everything but all good now. Or will be. I feel like I got a bit lost, I knew I was coming to a point somewhere in that sentence."

"The big Astrodella placed right outside the TARDIS doors," Rory clarified.

"Right, yes, thank you Rory. I knew I was keeping you around for a reason." The Doctor started pacing around the control room, his hands wildly gesturing as he began talking. He never could keep his body still, especially not if he was on explaining the complexity of space and time. "The bigger Astrodellas are rare and normally feed off uninhabited planets at the corners of the Universe where they can't hurt anyone. They are living, sentient beings but they can't be reasoned or bargained with. Practically impossible to communicate with, this is one of the reasons why no one really knows about them. If they aren't a problem, then there's no reason to understand them. Just another star in the sky."

"If no one's ever really talked to them," Amy stepped forward with a sceptical face. "Then how do we stop it?"

The Doctor smiled brightly at her, looking like a kid who had just gotten his favourite toy for Christmas. "No idea. Isn't it exciting?"

 **TBC**


	5. A Plan, Starring the Doctor

**Chapter Title** : A Plan, Starring the Doctor

 **Author's note** : To any to read the chapter titles: Did you get my little word pun? "Starring"

Personally, I think I'm hilarious! ... *awkward silence* ... Fine ... Onward then!

 **Disclaimer** : I claim no ownership of Doctor Who and any of its characters, places and so on and so forth. This is written purely for cheap entertainment purposes.

* * *

Some hours later Amy found herself back at the mansion.

They had gathered in what appeared to have been intended as a study but that had been transformed into a meeting hall with a large, rectangular wooden table placed in the middle, matching chairs made of the same dark oak placed sporadically around the table. A more meticulously carved chair with a high backrest had been placed at one end. Kharli was currently occupying that seat. Next to her sat some of her advisors.

Vestor still seemed on high alert with the newcomers and had placed himself strategically between the Doctor and his Commander. Madge had been invited for the meeting as well and she had seated herself respectfully on a chair against one of the walls to stay in the shadows, her old blue eyes observant and curious.

The Doctor made no such move to hide. He stood in the centre of the room, flaunting his hands about as he explained much of what he had already said to Amy and Rory about the Astrodellas. Kharli paid close attention to every word he said, asking where she had doubts or when he talked too fast for her to follow.

"Why has it come here?" she eventually asked when she spotted an opening in the Doctor's wordstream.

"It didn't come here, certainly not for a reason. Astrodellas don't make conscious decisions. They move purely on instinct. They appear, no one knows how or why. This one appeared here and has been moving steadily closer to the planet to properly feed. The missing Parivians are most likely dead, sucked dry of water and energy. More will probably follow. It will only grow worse when its hunger intensifies and it moves closer."

Kharli's eyes fell to the table as she seemed to consider this answer. An oppressing, tense silence followed as she processed this information. When she looked up, her gaze was sombre but also filled with steely determination. She looked prepared to do whatever she must to save her people.

When she spoke, her voice was neutral but grave.

"Doctor, do I need to evacuate my people?"

The Time Lord's attitude fell as his shoulders slumped slightly. "There is no outrunning this. I'm sorry."

"So we cannot reason with the creature and we cannot outrun it. Then what do you suggest we do, Doctor?"

"I don't know. Yet," the Doctor confidently said. "There is a solution somewhere. We just have to find it!"

"And when do you suppose that will happen, Doctor?" Vestor spoke up for the first time. He moved closer to the Doctor. "When half the people are either burned or starved to death? When Parivia is all but a deserted ghost town?"

"Vestor ..." Kharli warned from behind him but the Captain paid her no heed. He continued staring down at the Time Lord before him, his blue eyes firm.

"No, no, it's under control," the Doctor held out his hand to keep her in her seat, as well as keeping Amy away who had moved closer when Vestor did. He kept his own eyes firmly locked with the Parvian's. "Isn't it, Vestor?"

"My Commander might have placed her trust in you for something you did centuries ago. But from where I'm standing, all you've brought upon us so far is trouble. So I would tread very carefully if I were you. Doctor." Vestor practically spat out the final word.

"Vestor!" Kharli commanded as she exploded out of her chair. "I think it's time you took some air."

The Captain of the Guard hastily turned on his heel and stalked out. Kharli's bright blue eyes followed his exit closely. When he was gone she exhaled loudly. "I am sorry, Doctor. His heart is in the right place but he lets fear rule his mouth."

"No doubt there," Amy muttered.

"But he was right about one thing," Rory carefully added. "We need to think of something fast before more Parivians get hurt."

"Yes, thank you, Rory. But it's like not I can just ask the Astrodella to leave. And I can't exactly teleport Parivia away," the Doctor sarcastically commented.

"I'm not asking you to move the planet, but surely there must be something you can do."

The Doctor froze in his incessant walking around in circles as Rory spoke. Even with his back turned to them Amy knew exactly what look had appeared on his face. That was a Time Lord who had gotten an idea. A Time Lord who suddenly knew what to do.

"Now there's an idea," he muttered as a smile spread across his face.

"What? Moving the planet?" Amy disbelievingly said. Even for the Doctor that seemed like a far-fetched idea.

"What? No, of course not, that's ridiculous!" the Doctor turned around to face them. "You can't just move a planet, the consequences would be disastrous!"

"Then what ..."

"We're not moving the planet. We're moving the Astrodella!"

"And how can you manage that?" Rory asked sceptically. "If it was possible, wouldn't someone already have done it?"

"It's a big universe. Who knows? Maybe someone already has. Now, it's not going to be easy. First I would have to reverse engineer the TARDIS's gravitational matrix, of course the range will have to be amplified as well not to mention the thrusters. If they break apart before it's done then we could end up on the other side of the galaxy and then we'll really be in trouble..."

"Doctor?" Kharli tried to break into his word stream. The Time Lord continued on resolutely muttering to himself. He made no sign as to having heard the Parvian Commander.

Amy took matters into her own hands. "Doctor!" she yelled out loud.

That made him stop. He looked up suddenly, almost seeming surprised to notice he wasn't in his TARDIS and that he wasn't alone. "Am I rambling again?"

"Yes. And someone's trying to talk to you." Amy nodded her head knowingly towards Kharli.

The Parivian flashed a brief smile as a thank-you before turning her attention to the awaiting Time Lord.

"Doctor, is it possible?" Her voice was as careful as her words. She didn't dare have false hope. "Can you save Parivia?"

The Doctor stared at her for a good long while as he pondered what to tell her. In the end he settled with flashing a determined, confident smile.

"Yes, Commander. I believe I can."

* * *

Amy was glad the TARDIS had been parked just at the outskirts of Parivia after their little trip to investigate the Astrodella. That meant she didn't have to go far when she went looking for her Doctor.

She had left Rory with Madge. They were prepping for a possible evacuation and whatever that entailed if their plan didn't work as intended. Amy arrived at the blue police box and waltzed straight into the TARDIS. It was silent at the console.

"Doctor?" she called.

"Down here!" echoed his voice from under the glass floor.

Amy followed the sound down the stairs and found him positioned in the harness suspended from the floor above, wires from the TARDIS hanging everywhere and snaked over his shoulders. Tools were haphazardly scattered in both his lap and all over the floor. Smaller goggles than the ones they had used earlier had been placed to cover his eyes. However he pulled them down to hang around his throat as Amy approached.

"How's it coming out there?" he inquired while he began connecting two small wires in his lap.

"Kharli's preparing her people, Vestor's preparing the guards and Rory's helping Madge so everything's taken care of," Amy reported. She sat down on the bottom step and watched with slight amusement as the Time Lord recoiled from the shower of sparks that sprung from the two merged wires.

"Why do you have to do it?" Amy ventured when the Doctor seemed sure he wasn't going to fry within the next second if he continued to tinker with all the electrics.

"It's my TARDIS. No one else gets to fly my TARDIS. Isn't that right, darling?" the Doctor directed the last question upwards, affection clear in his voice.

"With the exception of River," Amy muttered under her breath.

"You say something?" the Doctor was bent over in the harness, grasping at a couple of wires on the floor.

"Yeah, I said 'can't you just put it on autopilot or something?'"

He looked at her aghast, like she had just suggested burning the TARDIS and everything in it. "Autopilot? What do you think this is? An airplane? This is a highly complex time machine, capable of travelling anywhere in time and space and you wanna put her on autopilot?"

"Says the man who constantly leaves the brakes on." He sent her an indignant stare. "Okay, sorry. Forget I asked," Amy held up her hands in surrender. She searched his face with her eyes. "Why does it have to be you though?"

The Doctor stopped his mucking about the wiring and the modifications and turned his attention fully to Amy. "I think the question you really want to ask is why you can't come with," he seriously stated.

"You're constantly telling me and Rory to stop doing stupid things and then you run around doing the exact same thing."

"Because I'm the only one with a chance of actually surviving stupidity."

"You are not alone in this, Doctor," Amy said sincerely, leaning forward on her knees. "I hope you know that."

The Doctor smiled gently at her from his harness. "I do. But this is not about stupidity. I need you and Rory on the ground, to tell me what's happening. And I need someone I trust to save these people if this doesn't work."

"But it will work, right?"

The Time Lord's smile changed from gentle to bold and ecstatic. "Of course it will. I'm the Doctor."

 **TBC**


	6. A Geronimo for the Madmen

**Chapter Title** : A Geronimo for the Madmen

 **Author's note** : The Doctor has a plan! But will it work? Most importantly, will he make it as well?

 **Disclaimer** : I claim no ownership of Doctor Who and any of its characters, places and so on and so forth. This is written purely for cheap entertainment purposes.

* * *

The Doctor found himself completely alone.

Well, not completely-completely. Outside of the TARDIS stood a horde of Parivians as well as his two friends. They were all watching as the time machine prepared to take-off. The Doctor could clearly see the Ponds' faces on the monitor screen as they stood at the front of the crowd. Rory watched with a hard expression. He hid it well to all who didn't know him but to those who did it was easy to spot the caution written so plainly on his face. _Rory, the Roman. Always the sceptic, aren't you?_

His wife standing beside him was a whole other story. She stood there, practically shining with confidence. Her firm certainty stood out like a sore thumb among the rest of the some-what sullen faces of the crowd. She did always believe in him. If he assured her she would believe him. Of course, as they had travelled on and on she had gotten better at distinguishing between his facades and his truths. So he had also gotten better at lying to her.

At the moment, he wasn't entirely certain if this would work. There were so many things that could go wrong; the configurations and enhancements he had tinkered forth might end up exploding in his face, _literally_ , or the Astrodella could tear them to pieces and suck them dry. Or something completely third he hadn't bothered taken into account. But it was why he had asked for Amy and Rory to stay behind in Parivia. Amy had figured that one out fairly quickly but he prided himself on being able to soothe her this time. He did however also mean what he said to her. He trusted Amy and Rory to come up with a solution should he fail. He put his blind trust in Amy and Rory Pond, like they did him.

The Doctor put a gentle hand on the control board of the TARDIS. "What do you say, old girl? Are you ready to try?"

The machine around him groaned in response.

"Oi! I don't want that language here! This might just work and you know it! Of course, we might also end up imploding and blowing up a planet but that's for the naysayers to think about."

The TARDIS hummed more gently this time. The Doctor smiled brightly up at his beloved time machine. "That's more like it!"

He adjusted the monitor in front of him and pushed several buttons on the console. Stretching across it he pulled down on a lever. As he prepared the TARDIS for the strenuous task ahead, his mouth started working as well.

"Have you wondered about the word mayhap? It was recorded by the humans in the 1500s and they used it vigorously until suddenly it just disappeared. People rarely ever say it anymore, did you notice? It's a forgotten word but it's so lovely to say! _Mayhap_. What do you think? When we're done here we should go found out why they've stopped using it. Pick up Amy and Rory and _mayhap_ travel to 1544 ... I don't think I've been there before."

He stopped running around the console and grasped the accelerating lever. He felt the excitement that always followed with doing something he didn't know the outcome to surge through him. The Time Lord couldn't help the grin that broke across his face.

"Geronimo," he shrugged and pulled it down.

* * *

Amy watched as the light on top the police box brightened and the blue time machine gingerly rose into the air at the first few meters. Then it shot up into the sky, leaving a trial of wind that whipped her red hair.

"This better work," Rory muttered nervously at her side.

"It will," she said without hesitation, her eyes never leaving the blue sky above.

"How can you be so certain?" Kharli asked from the other side of her. Trepidation was clear on her face as well as in her voice.

At this, Amy shifted her confident eyes towards the Parivian Commander. "Because he's the Doctor."

* * *

Immediately the Doctor felt the TARDIS move. It propelled itself forward as they surged towards the Astrodella in the sky. It didn't take long before they were hovering above the bright, burning creature again. The Doctor manoeuvred around in the control room, pushing, pulling and switching as fast as he could.

A flick of a switch here. _Turning on the gravitational field_

The turn of a dial there. _Extra carrying capacity._

Pulling a large lever upwards. _Pulling fuel to the thrusters_.

A push of a button. _Goodbye running track, didn't need you anyways_.

The TARDIS began to groan but he ignored every sound. A few warning lights started to beep and blare loudly. The Doctor rapidly turned them off.

He flicked another switch and then ran towards the steering controls. As he pulled at them the TARDIS whined and dipped. Lights flickered on and off. Then the shaking started. The Time Lord strained to keep his footing and his hands on the controls. In his mind he felt the anger and confusion seeping off of the Astrodella. He tried to send comforting thoughts but nothing seemed to reach the big creature. It was blind to any advances but its own.

The TARDIS continued its tremors and sparks flew from both the console and below the deck. The Doctor ducked to avoid getting the glowing sparks on him but he still maintained his grip on the steering. The shaking increased and suddenly the TARDIS lunged as the Astrodella resisted the pull. The Doctor was unprepared for the sudden movement. With a yelp, he was torn away from the controls. He sailed through the air until he hit the hard floor with a grunt of exertion. The wind was knocked out of his lungs but he ignored his body's protests and rapidly rose to his feet to stagger back to the console where his hands firmly grasped the steering controls again. He held on as tightly as he could as the sparks continued to fly and pop around his head. He refused to let go. The cries from the Astrodella in his mind increased with the whining and groaning of the TARDIS. A low, single flame erupted from somewhere to his right.

 _That's probably not important_.

The TARDIS tore to the left but this time the Doctor was prepared for it and he managed to keep his grip, although one of his boots did slip on the floor. His precious time machine complained loudly as the strain got heavier. She struggled to keep it together.

"Come on, old girl. I'm right here," the Doctor grunted with as much encouragement as he could muster. "We can do it together! Come on!"

He grabbed the controls tighter and heaved with all of his might to regain control. He felt them moving forward as the Astrodella grew weary. Yet it refused to give in and he felt it lashing out. He didn't let it sway him one bit. With a grunt and ferocious yank at the controls he forced all of them onward.

 _Come on then!_

"GERONIMO!"

 **TBC**


	7. A Touch of Helplessness

**Chapter Title** : A Touch of Helplessness

 **Disclaimer** : I claim no ownership of Doctor Who and any of its characters, places and so on and so forth. This is written purely for cheap entertainment purposes.

* * *

It was difficult to make out what was happening from the ground. The sun was low in the sky but the long shadows and darker colours had yet to appear and the sky was still its radiant blue so the stars were difficult to spot.

Almost all of Parivia had been gathered to watch the Doctor take off but most had vanished within the first ten minutes. Amy couldn't blame them. Nothing really happened from their standpoint so all most of them could do was settle down and wait for whatever outcome happened. Amy hated this part. She was supposed to be there for her raggedy Doctor, helping him. It felt wrong to be left behind. She was glad to have Rory beside her. He didn't waver at her side for one second. This was after all the man who waited 2,000 years for her. He was also there to support her whenever she needed it, whether she realized it or not.

Kharli, Vestor and Madge remained as well. None of them left or even made a move to leave. As the sky darkened slightly the light started to shift towards the dark and in the dim hues the stars poked their heads out.

"There!" Kharli shouted as she pointed up.

It wasn't difficult to spot the Astrodella. It was still the biggest one in the sky. But now it was moving, fast. It was already beginning grow smaller.

"It's working. It's actually working," Rory marvelled.

"Of course it is, stupid!" Amy chastised but there was no malice or even harshness in her voice. She reached out for her husband's hand and interlocked her fingers with his. She squeezed as hard as she could and felt the reassurance stream into her when she felt Rory squeezing back.

* * *

An hour passed by without incident. All remaining eyes were glued upwards.

They had all watched in silence as the Astrodella grew smaller and smaller. Eventually it had winked out of existence as it completely disappeared from their view. It was working. The Doctor was pulling it away successfully. All that remained now was the waiting. The waiting for the Doctor's return.

Rory had placed himself on a chunk of cement wall, remnants from a former building, and was tracking his wife's movements with his eyes. Amy was pacing in front of him impatiently as they waited. She had tried sitting down but that only lasted about 10 minutes before she couldn't stand it anymore. Another half an hour of pacing and waiting slowly passed by.

"He should have been back by now, shouldn't he?" Amy said out loud. She longingly looked at her husband for answers.

"Do you have any idea how long it takes to haul an oversized star-like creature across space? Because I don't and I'm pretty sure the Doctor doesn't either," Rory calmly answered. But his leg bouncing up and down rapidly betrayed his calm exterior. He was just as anxious as she was.

"I know, I know, it's just-"

"Amy Pond," Vestor's voice interrupted her sentence. She looked over at the Captain and was surprised to find the faintest traces of a smile present at his lips. He was pointing up at the sky. "Look."

She followed his line of sight and felt her own smile pull at her lips. Up in the dark blue a light was coming closer. It wasn't bright starlight like the Astrodella had given off. It was the light on top of the TARDIS. And it was coming nearer. Rory rose to his feet and stood next to his wife, his lips pulled into a grin.

It wasn't long before the outline of the old familiar blue box came into view as well. It came surging towards them.

 _That's a little too fast_.

Amy had just made the thought when Vestor voiced it, a frown taking over his face. "Is he supposed to be going that fast?"

"No," she answered darkly.

She watched with the others as the TARDIS sped towards them. A kilometre away from them it began slowing down. But it was still turning around itself rapidly as it desperately tried to slow down. Then it hit the ground with a splash of dirt and Amy heard herself gasp with the shock. She could only stare in horror as the TARDIS tipped sideways and rolled multiple times before coming to a complete stop in a cloud of dirt. Smoke rose from the corners of the time machine and the entrance was turned towards the little group standing transfixed a few metres away. No one crawled out from the tipped double doors and Amy moved towards the smoking TARDIS.

She only got one step before the bottom door splayed open and the Doctor came rolling out. He used the momentum to get up so he practically rolled to his feet. His lanky frame rose quickly from the dirt and with his back turned he seemed to be staring confusedly at his turned-over TARDIS, like he couldn't comprehend what he was seeing.

"Doctor!" Amy called out.

He turned, swaying as he did, at the sound of her voice. He smiled brightly as Amy moved closer. As she did she began noticing how he looked. His jacket seemed torn and even singed in some places. His bowtie was loose and askew. Red blood shone at his hairline as a trail had begun its way down his face. He tried to move his long legs forward but only succeeded in staggering ahead. He would have tripped had Amy not rushed in front of him. She did her best to keep him steady as she held him up by the shoulders.

"Doctor?" She searched his face for any indication that he intended to finish his drop to the ground.

The weary Time Lord stared back at her with cloudy, tired eyes. They didn't have the same intelligent playfulness they usually carried. A slight smirk spread across his lips as he took her in. "Guess what?"

"What?"

"Gotcha …" he muttered.

Then he let out a hitched breath like he was in pain. His eyes disappeared as they rolled into the back of his head. He went completely limp, collapsing in Amy's arms. It was so sudden she didn't have time to prepare as his long body folded in on itself and they ended up sprawling in the dirt. Amy got to her knees and hovered above the Time Lord.

"Doctor?" she tried. This time she received no response. His eyes remained closed and his body slack. She placed her hands on his face.

"Doctor?" she said again.

Rory appeared in front her. He knelt down on the other side of the Time Lord, his eyes searching and his hands hovering just above the Doctor's chest. He leaned down and placed his ear against the Doctor's ribcage and closed his eyes in concentration as he listened. Amy remained silent, her hands still encircling the Doctor's face. She felt tears stinging at the edge of her eyes and a lump forming in her throat. She stubbornly held them back while she waited.

Rory opened his eyes then and breathed out in relief. "He's alive! He's breathing and I think I can hear both his hearts beating."

"Doctor, can you hear me?" Amy prodded as she delicately turned the Doctor's lax face towards hers. Her voice was slightly trembling.

There was no answer. Amy felt her concern evolve into fear. He was never this still. Her Doctor was always in movement, even when he shouldn't be. The only time she had been him so unresponsive was at Lake Silencio. And he had been dead then...

She was torn out of her despair when she felt another presence emerge by her side. A wrinkled, orange hand was placed delicately at her shoulder. She looked up to see Madge smiling gently down at her.

"Let us take care of him, dear," she softly said. "Let us take care of the Doctor for once."

Vestor bent down next to her. He slid one arm under the Doctor's knees while the other manoeuvred his shoulders. With more care than Amy would ever have given him credit for he picked up the limp Time Lord and cradled him in his arms as he rose to his own steady feet. The Doctor's head lolled limply against the Parivian's broad shoulder as he remained oblivious to the rustling movements. He didn't even elicit a moan or anything to signify he was aware. Amy couldn't imagine a moment where the Doctor would ever agree to being picked up like this and the fact that he did, without as much as a sound, made her heart twinge with fear and worry.

Vestor began carrying his precious cargo back into town, with Kharli and Madge in tow. The Ponds solemnly followed with their Doctor.

 **The End**


	8. A Helping Hand

**Chapter Title** : A Helping Hand

 **Disclaimer** : I claim no ownership of Doctor Who and any of its characters, places and so on and so forth. This is written purely for cheap entertainment purposes.

* * *

The Doctor remained unconscious throughout the entire walk. He didn't even stir when Vestor laid him onto one of the cots in Madge's cottage.

Madge was quick to shoo everyone out of the room after that. The kind, old Parivian all but evaporated as a commanding, fierce woman took over. She ordered everyone out of the room but Rory, who spent the next hour pedalling in and out of the bedroom to collect various vials and cloths. Amy could only lean back and watch and wait. She was sick of the waiting by now. She had done enough of that to last a lifetime.

But there was nothing she could help with or do so she patiently sat down and let the hour pass. And it did, quicker than she had dared to believe. When Madge emerged from the room it was with a solemn expression and Amy found her hope slowly dwindling. The Parivian couldn't tell her much, if anything at all. She had found a gash on his forehead that could have led to his unconsciousness but it looked neither deep nor severe enough. Aside from the gash on his head along with few bruises and a single burn there wasn't anything to find. Nothing that could explain the Doctor's state. The only one who could probably tell them what was wrong was currently lying senseless on a cot.

Amy was allowed into the room where she seated herself on the cot opposite of the Doctor's. The Time Lord was splayed out on the mattress with a thin blanket pulled up to his hips. His suspenders had been pulled down and his bowtie removed, folded and placed neatly on the small flimsy nightstand by the bed. His jacket was likewise folded and placed on another bed. Rory must have had a hand in that. The blood on his face had been cleaned away, leaving only an angry-looking red gash visible on his forehead. Amy couldn't decide if he was paler than usual. It was hard to tell in the dim light. Other than that nothing appeared to be wrong. Amy would say he looked to simply be sleeping but she wasn't sure she had ever seen him do that ... at least not willingly. He rarely ever allowed anyone to see him so off guard and open. And here he was. All of the lines that had seemed etched into his face when he was awake were now gone. He looked every bit the young man whose face he wore instead of the old, intelligent Time Lord that was hidden underneath. Just an untroubled, young man looking for adventure. Amy wasn't fooled. She knew who was truly hiding under those eyelids. If he would only open them ... She sighed and leaned over to gently brush a stray piece of his ruffled hair away from his eyes.

 _Always gotta be raggedy, don't you, Raggedy Man_

Rory joined her in the bedroom a little while later. He tried to pretend he had been busy elsewhere but she knew he had been waiting patiently in the other room, letting her have her moment with her Doctor like he knew she needed. He flopped down next to her and the fragile cot whined a little as two people gathered on the thin mattress. Amy snuggled up next to her husband, her eyes never leaving the Doctor's prone body. Rory rested his head atop of Amy's ginger hair.

"Thank you," Amy said fondly.

"For what?"

"For being you."

* * *

They sat there and let the hours tick by. Slowly Rory drifted off into a light sleep. But Amy stayed awake as the sun poked its head above the horizon and filled the bedroom with orange light as it shined in through the small window. Amy watched as it slowly grew brighter and wider until it spread to the Doctor's face. He showed no indication of being bothered with the sunlight. He hadn't moved either. He was in the exact same position as he had been throughout the night.

Madge came in and instantly her eyes fell on her patient. She blew out a breath like she had been hoping for another sight than the one that met her. Silently she entered and crouched down at the Doctor's bedside. Tenderly she placed the outside of her wrinkled, orange hand on the Doctor's cheek and when he didn't respond she moved it to his chest. There it rested and moved slowly up and down in pace with his breathing.

"Yeah, he's been like that all night," Amy supplied and gently moved out from her husband's embrace. It didn't wake him so she let him sleep. He deserved the rest.

"I only treated the visible wounds," Madge answered her earnestly. "I had hoped the head wound was the cause but I did not expect it to be so. Something else is amiss and I do not have the tools to handle such things."

"What do you mean?"

"Time Lords are no easy patients, my dear. All I have to go on are old books and rumours," Madge threw her a sad smile. "There is only so much I dare to try. Most of what I have might do more damage than good."

"There must be something you can do," Amy dared.

"Time Lords are able to close themselves off psychically if pressured enough," Madge carefully explained. "Close off their minds to the outside world to heal or to hide. If he has retreated into himself I'm afraid there is nothing we can do."

She sighed and directed her attention back to the Doctor. "We just need to give him time."

* * *

Amy had taken it upon herself to try and drag the Doctor out of his little mental prison.

If Madge was right, then he simply needed to know it was safe to wake up. She spent the remainder of the day trying desperately to rouse him. She tried talking to him first. She said everything from comforting, soft words to menacing threats. The latter one came much easier than the first. Her fear fuelled a lot of them and she found herself making all kinds of threats. From swearing to never travel with him again to painting the TARDIS pink. When that didn't have an effect she tried a more physical approach. She poked, pulled and prodded with as much force as she dared. Eventually she slapped him a couple of times. On both cheeks just to be sure. Nothing worked.

The Time Lord remained completely limp.

So when the day was slowly coming to its end and red and pink colours started to appear in the sky, Amy was in the exact same position as when she first started. She was sitting on the opposite cot, just staring at the Doctor, willing him to wake up or just move. Anything to let her know he heard her. That he was okay.

He did no such thing. She would never say it out loud but she was terrified. She was terrified that she and Rory would be trapped here because of the Doctor's bloody heroics. She was terrified that he would leave her, this time for good. That he would never came back to her. She was absolutely frightened that he would die right here in front of her and this time there wasn't some magic trick, no Tesselecta, no River, to bring him safely back to her.

Amy was absentmindedly turning the golden flower Rory had given her around in her hands. She looked down on it and noticed the golden colours hadn't dimmed one bit since it got plucked and neither had the blue and green leaves or the stem they were attached to. She gently ran her fingers across the glowing petals and felt the velvet softness under her touch. She placed it then atop the folded bowtie on the nightstand and turned her attention back to the Time Lord.

 _Please be okay, Doctor._

 **TBC**


	9. A Man and His Big, Blue Box

**Chapter Title** : A Man and His Big, Blue Box

 **Disclaimer** : I claim no ownership of Doctor Who and any of its characters, places and so on and so forth. This is written purely for cheap entertainment purposes.

* * *

The Doctor's mind was jumbled when he first rose from the depths of his subconscious.

He was dimly aware of the fabric running underneath his body and the soft support of the pillow under his head. He could vaguely feel the blanket covering him and the delicate wind blowing in his face. What he was acutely aware of however was the weak sensation that seemed to flow through his entire being. He could feel the deep weariness of his aching body that penetrated all the way into his bones. His mouth was dry and his head felt extremely heavy, like it had been submerged in cotton.

 _Been to a planet like that once. Never coming back though..._ He couldn't remember the name of the planet he was thinking off, which was odd. His mind was off, sluggish and slow, something he certainly wasn't comfortable with. It usually meant he would miss something obvious. He might as well be human with his current brain capacity.

He knew why he felt so abused and wrong. He remembered every little detail about what he had done. He knew it had been a terrible idea. But like with all terrible ideas he had ever gotten he hadn't hesitated. He just did it, never once worrying about the consequences. Okay, so he had worried about them a little. He skimmed them more than read them and decided it would be worth it. He could only hope it had worked. He desperately wanted it to work. Although he had done similar things in the past he was almost certain he hadn't pulled this exact stunt before. And judging by how damaged he felt and how he simply _hurt_ there was obviously a reason why it shouldn't be done. But hopefully it had all been worth it. He had after all done it to save _her_.

He worked himself up to open his eyes. He wasn't exactly sure what he'd find when he did. The details of what he had decided to do were clear in his mind but what happened afterwards ... Now, that was the really fuzzy part.

He hated having fuzzy parts.

The Doctor didn't trust his body enough to move so he settled for simply opening his eyes first. He blinked them open gingerly and found himself staring directly up at a gray, decrepit ceiling. _Okay, probably not in the TARDIS then_.

He turned his head around to further inspect his surroundings and then he recognized it. Madge's little cottage. The bedroom no doubt. He further searched the room and found the Ponds asleep in a cot similar to his just across from him. Amy had fallen asleep in Rory's lap and her husband was leaning against the wall behind him with his head hung low in sleep. The Doctor smiled gently at the sight. His loyal Ponds. But then his eyes caught sight of the nightstand by his head. Or rather, the items that were resting on the nightstand. His beloved bowtie neatly folded into a square with a plucked _Caeruleus aurumis_ on top of it.

 _They removed my bowtie! And placed a plant on top of it!_

The audacity of it was enough to fuel his limps. He painstakingly sat up, doing his best to ignore the burn of his worn out muscles. But no matter how hard he tried he simply couldn't stop the deep groan that escaped his lips as he rose. It was enough to wake up the two other occupants in the room. Amy shot up at the sound, tearing Rory out of his doze as well. The second that followed seemed to stretch on forever as the three time travellers in the room all froze, only staring at each other in mild shock.

"Doctor?" Amy broke the silence with her low, disbelieving question.

"Yes?"

He never got an answer as Amy sprung from her cot to his and enveloped him in a tight hug. The Doctor gladly accepted it although he cast a confused glare in Rory's direction. The man only smiled relieved back at him. Well, then. Perhaps things hadn't run as smoothly as he thought.

Amy pulled away from him slightly to look him in the eye. She looked so openly relieved. Then her face changed. A violent pain spread up and down his arm as she punched his shoulder hard with her fist.

"Ow! What was that for?" he exclaimed and rubbed the sore spot.

"Don't ever do that to me again!" she sternly replied. The fire in her eyes raged as red as her hair.

"Don't worry, I won't be doing that again for the next couple hundred years!" the Doctor promised loudly.

It seemed to satisfy the redhead enough for her to back off as she moved back to the cot she had slept on. The Doctor took the opportunity to stretch out his sore muscles as he swung his legs over the edge of the bed. The room tipped as he moved and he held onto the cot while the dizziness dissipated. He blinked as the worried faces of his companions swam into focus again. He quickly waved off their concern with what he hoped was a confident smirk. He wasn't exactly sure he managed to pull it off.

It was only then he noticed his boots had been removed and the cold from the cement floor was slowly etching its way through his socks. Judging by the recent dizzy spell he wasn't sure he wanted to trust his balance enough to actually stand to find his shoes. Instead he settled for looking around the room to try and determine the time of day.

"How long have I been here?" he then asked his friends when his still addled mind refused to cooperate.

"You've been ... out cold for almost two days," Rory answered.

 _Well, punch justified_ , the Time Lord thought.

Rory continued. "What happened up there? Did the Astrodella ..." he searched for the right word. "Do something to you?"

"More like the Astrodella did something to my TARDIS. Apparently it didn't like being moved away from its copious food supply so it started resisting. We got it moving but it began tearing her apart. I absorbed as much of the damage as I could through the psychic link to keep her going."

"You can do that?" Amy asked with a frown.

"Apparently. I had only heard about it from the old Gallifreyan records and it's highly frowned upon in most quadrants of the Universe and very dangerous to do. She could have just as easily fried my mind as well as herself. She almost did but I pulled myself into a healing trance that took the worst of it," the Doctor shrugged off the explanation like it was no big deal. He looked away from the shocked faces of his friends and found his shoes by the foot of the bed. He bent down with a strained breath to begin tying them back onto his feet.

"Now, tell me. Did my TARDIS survive?" he asked as he secured the laces.

"Well, we didn't exactly hang around to find out but it was smoking a little when you made your landing," Amy informed.

The Doctor's head shot up at the information. "Smoking? And you just left her there?"

"What? You were practically dead and it's just a- Doctor, where're you going?" Amy shouted.

The Time Lord had shot up from the small cot and raced out of the room. He ran for the exit, not even bothering to look at Madge, Kharli and Vestor who were all gathered in the room. They exclaimed his name in loud surprise at seeing him up and running but he didn't stop. He tore out the door and bolted through the paved streets, dust and dirt circling his wake. He ignored Amy and Rory's voices who called out from behind him. He didn't stop running until he reached the outskirts of town and following his instincts he slid to a stop. There, a few metres in front of him stood his precious, blue TARDIS. He didn't even register that all the occupants of Madge's cottage had followed him there. He had only eyes for the police box. She was covered in dust and dirt, sure, but she was standing upright and looked every bit the beautiful sight she always was to him. The alleviation at seeing his TARDIS intact raced through his body. The sudden sprint he had just taken did leave him winded though and it was enough for his body to temporarily betray him. He felt his knees buckle and he tipped to the side in a quick attempt to keep upright. He ended up stumbling right into Rory. The nurse reacted quickly and expertly as he firmly caught him and held him steady.

The Doctor shook of the sudden weakness, annoyed at his own body. He didn't care. He didn't have the time to take care of it at the moment. Couldn't that be a problem for later?

"Fine, I'm fine," he insisted as he wrestled his way out of Rory's grip. The human held up his hands in surrender, up-giving. He knew him well enough to know the Time Lord would refuse any help for as long as possible. Rory could only watch with the rest of them as the Doctor made his way to the TARDIS before them, only faltering once.

He placed a careful hand on the doors. He felt eager happiness seep into his hearts and a smile broke out of his face at the feeling. His fatigued body and mind didn't matter anymore. "Don't worry, old girl. I'm right here, just like I said."

"How is it even upright? It practically crashed on the side yesterday," Amy wondered from behind him.

"Because she is a beauty. Aren't you?" the Doctor affectionately said at the blue box before him.

"Right. Forget I asked."

 **TBC**


	10. An Epilogue

**Chapter Title** : An Epilogue

 **Author's note** : So we have come to the end at last. I decided to post the final two chapters in succession to each other, so I can finally finish this story. I haven't had much feedback (perhaps I'm a bit late to the Doctor 11 party), but I wish to thank those of you that did take the time to support this. Any lasting impressions, thoughts or comments, please do review. I so enjoy reading your experiences!

Until next time! Geronimo!

Crimescenelover

 **Disclaimer** : I claim no ownership of Doctor Who and any of its characters, places and so on and so forth. This is written purely for cheap entertainment purposes.

* * *

A couple of hours later and they found themselves at the TARDIS again, although everyone was more relaxed this time around.

Especially Madge and Kharli had tried their best to get the Doctor to settle back down and convince him to postpone his departure another day. They weren't entirely convinced he was well enough yet to travel. Amy wasn't completely sure either but she knew the Doctor. No one could ever make him sit down and relax. Well, River was a good enough bet if things got out of control. For now, Amy believed him when he told them he was fine. But she would be keeping a close eye on him for the next couple of days to make sure.

So they found themselves saying goodbye to Parivia and its inhabitants. To everyone's surprise, Vestor was the first to come forward.

"I won't apologize for my actions, Doctor. But I will say this: Next time the Doctor strolls up to Parivia's doors, I will make sure he is treated fairly," he said and held out his hand for the Doctor to shake.

The Time Lord clasped it firmly with a coy smile on his face. "I'll announce my arrival the next time then."

Vestor wordlessly nodded his goodbyes at Amy and Rory and moved back. Madge took his place and hugged both of the Ponds with more strength than a woman her age should posses. After she had all but stopped their blood flow she turned to the Doctor and placed a firm hand on his arm. She flashed her bright and kind smirk up at him. "You take care of yourself, my dear."

The Doctor grasped her hand and held on tightly. Gratitude and gentle fondness flowed out of his eyes. "Thank you," he whispered and did his best to match her warm smile.

Kharli didn't move in to hug or shake hands. She looked at all of them in turn, stopping at the Time Lord in the exact same way she had done in the dungeons some days ago. Her voice seemed almost light and joyful like a huge burden had been lifted off of her shoulders. "Doctor, I want to thank you for all you have done for us, both now and in the past. Please know that the Doctor and his friends will always be welcome here in Parivia, no matter who the Commander will be when you next turn up. Or what face you wear."

"If they are anything like you, Commander Kharli, I would be honoured to visit again," the Doctor respectfully answered.

Madge seemed to suddenly radiate with pride and subtly took her daughter's hand. Kharli showed no signs on her face of acknowledging the familiar affection. But any who paid close attention would notice she didn't tear her hand away; instead she tightened her grip.

The Parivians stood back and watched as the doors to the TARDIS closed behind the time travellers and the light on top of the police box brightened as it began facing in and out of time. Then it disappeared completely.

The Doctor moved merrily around the TARDIS controls a he guided the time machine through the Time Vortex, although he seemed to be moving slightly slower than he normally did. But his companions didn't voice it and he didn't acknowledge it.

"Alright!" he excitedly called out. "Where to next?"

"Somewhere noisy," Amy requested from her position by the staircase.

"Somewhere air-conditioned," Rory supplied from his spot in one of the seats.

"Somewhere air-conditioned and noisy coming right up!" the Doctor flicked several switches and pressed a blue button.

He stopped with his hand grasping the accelerator and looked up at the TARDIS. His beautiful, perfect, intact TARDIS, humming healthily and proudly like she would continue to do as long as he was around. He smiled fondly.

"Hello, you sexy thing. Did you miss me?"

 **The End**


End file.
